Final Fantasy Zero
by hexias
Summary: Presenting the finalized version of FF0! The main character, Kagome, searches for herself and her love in the crazy world of crossovers.
1. Prologue

"Inuyasha!"  
Tears streamed down the eighteen-year-old girl's cheeks as she stood motionless, staring into the void. The ends of her long, dark brown hair brushed against her waist when she collapsed to her knees and began crying into the palms of her hands. The silver ring on her left ring finger shimmered a little.

"No… you can't be gone!" she sobbed, finding it suddenly hard to breathe. "You /can't/ be! Not… not again…"  
Just then, when everything seemed to be over, a voice in the back of her head rang out. It told her, in a soft, calm tone: "He's never coming back." The girl's eyes grew wide; she recognized that voice as soon as she heard it. Her heartbeat rose, her mind raced. She felt the blood pulsing through her fingertips.  
"Naraku…" she spat angrily, taking her hands from her face and looking up. What she saw when she raised her gaze was exactly as she had suspected; the malicious spider-hanyou known as Naraku, smirking down at her as though his victory was something to celebrate.  
"Why, my dear Kagome… why are you crying?" he asked. "It's not as though that dog will be missed." He reached down to help the small girl to her feet, but she swatted his hand away and stood up on her own.  
"You!" she cried, pointing at him. He showed no sign of a reaction. "You killed him!" Still, the half-demon only grinned. "You /killed/ Inuyasha!"  
This got a laugh out of him. Even that tiny chuckle sent chills dancing up and down Kagome's spine. "I could kill you too, if I wanted to."  
Glaring furiously at Naraku through the strands of shoulder-length hair which hung in her face, the miko was tempted to laugh. "There's no chance."

"Oh, but there is, and you /know/ it." Naraku grasped Kagome's chin with his right hand, holding tight, and leaned in so far that he was sure she could feel him breathe. The only reason he couldn't sense her breath on his lips was because she'd held it.  
"Let me go," Kagome said sternly. "Get off of me/now/."  
Naraku chuckled again and released the girl's face. She rubbed her chin subconsciously as she took a step back.

"You may leave, Kagome," said Naraku, holding his hands out to his sides. "I will open the portal and allow you to return to where you belong."  
Thankful for this, she forced herself to nod and even thank her husband's murderer. She took one more look around at the pitch-black void, silently cursing the hanyou who stood before her for ever summoning her to that hellish place. As she did so, Naraku positioned his hands in front of himself with his arms outstretched, and from them, a swirling black-and-gray ball of energy seemed to form out of nothing. As soon as she possibly could, Higurashi Kagome disappeared into that energy, vanishing from Naraku's sight.  
But not from his reach.


	2. Change Part 1

Standing now on the edge of a rocky cliff, Kagome stared blankly at the sunset. With its purple, orange, and pink hues, it brightened the leaves of the trees behind Kagome, and the light cast her shadow long across the barren cliff side.  
She held a shaky hand out to her right, and in it, a dagger materialized, its blade gleaming in the amber sunlight. The miko brought the dagger up to the back of her neck and lifted her hair over it, her hand still shaking, and closed her eyes. A single tear rolled down her cheek as someone called out from behind her:  
"Kagome! Stop it!"  
A tall–about 5'10"–girl was sprinting as quickly as she could to get to Kagome. This girl's hair was a pink-tinted blonde, and when it wasn't blowing wildly behind her in the wind her running created, it reached her upper back. Her eyes were a vibrant green. She wore a pair of black jeans, black boots underneath, and a sleeveless, purple dress-like shirt which was slit on the sides to the hips and hemmed in black. A hollow black circle was embroidered onto the violet cloth in front of her knees.  
"/Kagome!" she yelled again. However, the one to whom she called was not responding at all.  
With the bladed side of the dagger pointing towards her neck, Kagome twisted the dagger so that the blade faced her hair. The blonde one stopped as she reached Kagome, relieved that the smaller girl wasn't planning on suicide. However, what the little wolf /was/ going to do was a surprise, even to the blonde.  
Kagome pulled the dagger away from her head in a swift, backward motion, catching the loose hair with her free hand in a tight grip and throwing the dagger to the ground. She turned to the blonde with tears in her eyes, a blank look on her face, and a gaze of heartfelt pain, and suddenly, Kagome shivered. Being with what she wore – a short, pleated black skirt and a strapless white shirt – she suddenly realized that, without her hair, the wind was a very cold thing indeed.

"K-Kagome…" the blonde muttered, her eyes wide in awe. After a long, silent moment, she said, "Okay, Kagome. What's going on? What the hell could get you so messed up that you'd cut all your hair off?"  
Kagome remained wordless for a while, then explained. "Inuyasha is gone."  
"What?" She took a step forward, stopped, then walked up to Kagome and put her hands on the girl's shoulders. "What do you mean, he's gone?"  
"He's gone!" Kagome cried. The blonde tensed; it was rare for Kagome ever to raise her voice. "He's dead, gone; I will never see him again!" Her fists were clenched, and she held them close to her chest.  
"Oh… oh, my god… Kagome…!" The blonde hugged Kagome, and she threw her arms around the blonde in response. "It's okay, Kagome… you can cry if you need to, okay?"  
Kagome didn't decline this offer in the least. She sobbed heavily into the blonde's shoulder, nearly unable to breathe until she calmed down a bit.  
"I'm so sorry, Kagome, but… I need to know what happened. Tell me exactly what happened. Maybe we can bring him ba-" She knew it was impossible, so she stopped herself.  
"It…" Kagome said, finally able to speak. "It was Naraku… I know you knew that."  
"He's the only one who could ever have killed Inuyasha in his demonic state, right?"  
"Yes…" Pulling away, Kagome looked up at her and said, "Sakura, I… I don't know what to do… I'm pretty sure Naraku killed Inuyasha to-"  
"To get to you," Sakura finished the sentence. "I know he did. That's just how he does things. But don't worry; we'll all work even harder now."  
Kagome shuddered again, hugging herself momentarily. "I… I need my love back… I need my—" But just as she was about to finish her sentence, a whirlwind filled with feathers of the smoothest gray cut her off. As it subdued, a figure in a long, hooded black coat strung with belts and zippers appeared before them. Kagome pulled away from Sakura and stared at the figure—a male—in awe. The hood hid his eyes from view, but a tuft or two of dirty blonde hair was visible. From his back, a pair of evangelical wings with feathers that matched the ones in the wind unfurled. He extended his arm in front of him, towards Kagome, and she muttered in amazement, "Roxas?"


	3. Intervention

The boy let his arm fall slowly to his side as he stepped towards Kagome. Without thinking, she reached out to pull his hood back to see his face, but Sakura stopped her by means of verbal inquiry.  
"Kagome, who is this!" she cried. Kagome immediately dropped her hands, letting out a tiny, startled gasp as though she didn't expect the outburst.  
However, before Kagome could answer, the boy spoke. "Sakura, you needn't be so angry. I am not going to harm Kagome."  
Both girls' eyes grew wide; while Kagome looked blissful, though, Sakura only looked more furious. Kagome felt a gust of wind hit her head on, and at that instant, she let go of the hair she held in her hand. It was blown wildly by the wind down into the abyssal valley below the cliff; a memory to be forgotten sooner than remembered.  
And at that moment, Kagome threw herself into the boy's arms. "Roxas, it /is/ you!"  
"Yes. I'm just glad you can recall, Kagome…" He replied, wrapping his arms around her upper back—he was, after all, at least eleven inches taller than she.  
Silenced by the moment, Sakura said not a single word. She only watched as the reunion between her kid sister and a total stranger played out similarly to the end of a sad movie. A pang of jealousy pulsed through her heart, but she confusedly pushed it away with the thought//I have Sasuke. Why should I be jealous/  
When Roxas and Kagome finally split apart, he gazed down at her through the shadows cast on his eyes by the last rays of sunlight. Her eyes sparkled with tears, but not of joy; these were tears of sorrow, threatening to spill the moment she closed her eyes. And they did, when she blinked, and Daisuke brushed them away with a gentle finger as he said, "I'm sorry, Kagome. I have to go."  
She acted like she knew it was coming. Shaking her head, she pleaded silently with her eyes. When that didn't work, her body heaved with a sob and she whispered, "Please… don't leave me… not now."  
Roxas stroked Kagome's hair and leaned close to her so that he could reply as quietly as she had spoken a moment ago. Sakura was unable to hear what he said, as was his intention, and when he stood straight once more, she found her fists clenched. /Dammit. I must know this guy… Maybe he grew up at our orphanage./  
"I have to," said Roxas solemnly. "But I promise—I /vow/ that I will return for you. Just… wait a little longer. Now that your illusions are gone, I know it will be harder, but trust me; have I ever lied to you?"  
This brought a heartbreaking look to Kagome's face. Her eyes were like shimmering pools of chocolate that had been left in the sun for too long, bent out of shape and swimming in disappointment. However, her mouth had been twisted into a smile, and this miserable smile of hers was enough to draw tears from even Sakura.  
Kagome was unable to speak. Roxas murmured three short words before he vanished in the same cyclone of white feathers, leaving Kagome to stare into nothingness once more and speak softly, "I love you, too."


	4. Change Part 2

Kagome and Sakura trudged through the forest on the mountain's edge, turning their backs on the rim of the cliff as the sky became dark. One by one, millions upon millions of stars lit up the sky, accompanied by a pale half-moon. It was a fairly cloudy night, and by the time the two reached their home in the heart of the woods, it was also a pitch black one.  
Sakura had her arm around Kagome's shoulders until they reached the comforting warmth of their house, where she released her friend and told her to change clothes. The smaller girl nodded and withdrew into her bedroom while Sakura made her way to the living room. Another girl who looked to be around Sakura's age was slumped on the couch, watching the dim blue glow of the television. She had interestingly-styled auburn hair that reached her mid-back, and the ends were all dyed a ferocious red. Her eyes were also red, and she wore a halter-top of a lesser shade of red over a ¾-sleeve black shirt and a pair of torn-up black jeans.  
"Miyako," Sakura said, causing the girl to look up from the television.  
"What is it?" she asked. "Something wrong? You look angry."  
Sakura realized that this was true, and her expression relaxed. "Listen… you might want to turn the TV off for this, okay?"  
Miyako did as she was told, then motioned for Sakura to come and sit down. "Sakura, what's going on?"

"You remember Inuyasha?"

She blinked. "Uh… yeah. Why wouldn't I?"  
"Good point," Sakura replied, seeing that she'd spoken as though Inuyasha had been gone for a long time. "Well… he's dead."  
"What!" Miyako exclaimed. "You're kidding! Was it Naraku?"  
Sakura simply nodded. Miyako's hands were now clasped on her lap, and she looked down at the floor. At that moment, Kagome entered the room, smiling brightly as if nothing had happened. She now wore a white t-shirt over a black long-sleeved one and gray fingerless gloves under that, a similar black skirt to the previous one, only longer—this one reached her knees, a pair of black and white striped stockings, plus a pair of pink socks.

"There!" Kagome said cheerfully. "All changed. How do I look?"  
Miyako gave a weak smile, then her eyes grew wide in shock when she realized Kagome's haircut. "Oh, my god! You're hair's short!" she cried. Kagome giggled and nodded.  
Sakura managed to fully mask her pity in an approving grin. "You look awesome, my Kagome!" she told her. "Dig the tights."

"They're not tights!" she exclaimed, but then she realized that tights and stockings were the same thing. "Oh, wait… yes they are."  
Sakura and Miyako started to laugh, then Kagome followed suit, but they all stopped when the abrupt crash of thunder rang out through the room, shaking the floor and walls. Kagome looked to the window with a jolt, and she saw through the trees a mass of storm clouds hovering closer and closer to their house. Miyako's eyes closed tight when rain started coming down hard on the roof, but all Sakura did was yawn and reposition herself on the sofa.  
Just then, the front door burst open again, and the sound of the pouring rain pained Kagome's ears until the door closed. A considerable group of people, laughing and joking with one another, dragged their wet selves into the living room to be met by Kagome, Sakura, and Miyako, staring intently at the four oddities who had come into their home.  
"Uh… hi, guys!" said the only girl in the group. Her knee-length black hair was a little wet from the rain, as were her clothes: a black leather jacket left open over a pink bikini-style top, an extremely short black skirt with pink pleats, and a pair of black boots that tied up to the knee with pink laces. Her hair was also streaked with pink. "Whoa, Kagome's hair! It's all… short!" The four male members of the group didn't seem to react at all to Kagome's new cut.  
"Hello, Steph," Sakura said, purposely lacking enthusiasm and ignoring Steph's comment on Kagome's hair. When she looked up at the group, she rolled her eyes. "What did we tell you about bringing /them/ here?" she asked, motioning towards the four boys who surrounded Steph.  
Steph shrugged. "I don't remember."  
"Don't," Miyako answered. "Just /don't/."  
One of the guys, a blonde, spiky-haired one with blue eyes, stepped forward. "Even me?" he asked innocently, though his innocence was ironically false.  
"Even you," said Sakura and Miyako in unison. Miyako instantly realized that tonight was an especially /bad/ night to have him, of all people, in the house, and so she shot a bone-chilling glare at the boy. He took a step backwards.  
"Aw, c'mon, Miyako. Whya' gotta be so mean?" Steph asked pleadingly. "Let 'em stay. Just this once! Pleeeeease?"  
Miyako's glare worsened. "No," she said sternly. Kagome had now withdrawn into the shadows, peering blankly out at the others from behind her hair. When Steph saw her, she suddenly changed from looking irritatingly joyful to sad and sorrowful.  
"Is something wrong with Kagome?" she asked. One of the other boys, one with shoulder-length white hair and bright yellow eyes, immediately pushed himself out of the circle and bolted towards Kagome.  
"Are you okay!" he asked worriedly, gripping her shoulders and leaning close to her face. "D'ya need a kiss?" Kagome didn't respond; she only stared straight through him.  
"Get away from her, you damn clone!" Sakura yelled, throwing a few shuriken into his back. He released Kagome and pulled the stars out of his back, where a trickle of blood stained his shirt.  
"What was that for?" he asked angrily. "I was only trying to help."  
Sakura stood up and faced the group. "All of you, get /out!" she shouted. "Get the hell /out/ of our house/now!"  
Steph ran up to the wounded albino and said, "It's okay, CR. See you tomorrow!" She shoved him towards the door along with the others, then started waving happily. "Bye, Zell! Bye, Irvine! Bye, Riku! Bye, Skyy!" All of them waved nonchalantly as they left the house, running through the rain as a flash of lightning illuminated the forest for a split second.  
"Thank you," Sakura said exhaustedly. She stalked over to Steph and glowered at her, backing her up a few steps before saying in a low, angry voice, "/Never/ bring them here again. Do you understand me?"  
Steph nodded nervously and said, "Yes! I get it! I get it!"  
"Good," Sakura spat, turning away and returning to the couch. Kagome shuddered and ran off into her room, and before Steph could follow, Miyako grabbed her wrist.  
"What's going /on!" Steph yelled. "What's /wrong/ with her?"  
"Inuyasha's dead," Sakura's irate voice answered. "If you even /attempt/ to talk to Kagome about it, I'll personally tear you limb from limb."  
"And when she's done, I'll burn what's left of you until it's gone," Miyako chimed in.  
Upset that her friends would threaten her like that, Steph frowned and said, "Fine! Just let me go and I'll… I don't know, I'll go to sleep or something!" She tore her wrist out of Miyako's grasp and stormed in the direction opposite Kagome's room, toward her own room. Then Miyako sat down on the couch once again and turned the television back on, and both she and Sakura watched contently.


	5. Starlight Sovereign

Muffled wails and stifled sobs echoed through the hallways of the Haruno-Higurashi home, all of those cries coming from one place, one room, one girl. While the others knew she was crying, they knew not why she refused to stop; the truth was, she would have had to force herself if she planned to do so at all.  
Suddenly, an ear-splitting crack followed by a low, roaring boom – lightning, then thunder – made the poor oukami cry even harder out of pure, startled fright.  
"That does it!" Sakura growled, getting up from her spot on the sofa. "I can't stand this anymore!" She stomped over to the door of Kagome's bedroom and knocked on the door, and her voice changed from its harsh, angry tone to a calm, soothing one. "Kagome?"  
"W-what…?" Kagome's voice wavered. "I-is that you, S-Sakky-chan?"  
Sakura looked pained. "Yes, Kagome, it's me. Can I come in?"  
"Hai."  
She opened the door and saw her little sister curled up in a ball on her bed, wrapped up in a blanket Kaede had woven to celebrate Inuyasha's and Kagome's wedding. That wedding had never actually taken place. The poor girl's innocent brown eyes endured the sting of countless tears, with rivers of the salty liquid streaming from the outer corner of each eye, and within those chocolate pools of sorrow was not even a glimpse of hope.  
"Oh, Kagome…" Sakura sat down beside Kagome on the bed and hugged her once more, once again acting as a shoulder to cry on. "Listen to me, okay? We'll find Naraku and kill him, even if it's the last thing I do. I swear it."  
"A-arigatou… S-Sakura…" Kagome's entire body shook with the violent, quaking heave of crying. It was difficult for Sakura to see Kagome that way.  
"Hey, Kagome… guess what? Miyako burned some of Shirou's hair off today."  
Kagome looked up at Sakura, smiling feebly. "Really?"  
/Success/ Sakura thought, grinning. "Yeah. I guess he pissed her off, and the fire finally spread enough to get his hair this time."  
Then Kagome laughed a little, and she started to wipe her tears, though her eyes did not lose their grief-stricken gaze. "Wow… that was smart."  
Sakura nodded. "No kidding." She then stood up, her hand on Kagome's shoulder, and her smile faded to a slightly more serious look. "Get some rest, okay? We'll start the search for Naraku tomorrow morning."  
"Okay…" Kagome said quietly. Her saccharine smile almost instantly vanished at the mention of the spider's name. "Arigatou, ane-chan."  
"No problem." Sakura winked at Kagome before leaving her room, closing the door behind her. Kagome stared at the door for a moment, then turned her stereo on, turned the volume down so it was barely audible, then flicked the light off.  
As she lie awake on her bed, staring at the ceiling, she found that it was becoming increasingly difficult for her to get to sleep with every minute that passed. At first, she figured she was thinking too hard, and so she tried her hardest to focus on the music that floated in the cold night air. But after an hour, she grew impatient and got out of bed, pacing the floor in frustration.  
The hours passed, the clouds withdrew into the horizon, and the sun rose. Kagome hadn't gotten a wink of sleep all night, and although this wouldn't normally leave her in such a state, she was completely exhausted. Having given up hope around four AM, the little miko had read more than half of an immensely thick book, written a new song, and drawn two pictures in five hours. The sound of a fist rapping against her door made her eyes dart towards the sound, cracking open in an instant. She got up from her bed and opened the door to see Steph and Miyako standing before her, smiling.  
"G'morning, Kagome!" Miyako said cheerfully.  
"Ohayo," Kagome replied, sounding a bit dazed.  
Miyako blinked. "You sound like shit. I mean that in the best possible way…"  
"I… I didn't sleep much last night. But I'm fine, really."  
"Yeah, right!" Sakura's voice chimed in from around the corner. "You don't even /sound/ okay, Kagome!" When she rounded the corner and laid eyes on Kagome, she gasped and almost dropped the two mugs of coffee she carried. "Oh, god. What the hell /happened/ to you last night? You look awful!"  
This scared her. "Really? I didn't think it was /that/ bad… I couldn't sleep, so I am still really tired, and – oh!" she exclaimed, wide-eyed.  
"What?" said Sakura and Miyako simultaneously.  
Kagome's eyes narrowed as she walked past the two, failing to answer their question. They followed her out of curiosity, chasing her all the way back to the cliff from the previous day.  
They were greeted by an abrupt stop, plus the sound of something reminiscent of a laser beam on television, only more crystalline and clear. Startled, they looked toward Kagome. The small, spherical gray gem around her neck, the Tamashii no Tama, was giving off a blinding pink light. Kagome's arms were held out to her sides, palms up, and she faced the sky with closed eyes. The pink light engulfed her completely, and when it faded, she looked quite different. She wore a long, diaphanous gray dress, with long, bell-shaped sleeves. The collar was high, and the middle was cut so that her skin showed through a tiny replication of the Heartless insignia. This collar was a light, gentle shade of pink, and it merged with a poncho-esque piece of cloth—just as diaphanous as the dress—which framed her shoulders and hung to her elbows. Beneath that, a single piece of ribbon of the same color was laced from her hips to a point of invisibility in a corset-like fashion. There was also a line of the same pink visible under the skirt of the dress, where a slightly longer skirt showed through from underneath. Finally, in her right hand was a katana, the hilt wrapped in black and white leather and decorated at the top with her own brown oukami fur.  
Not only was the change in clothing, though, but also in her physical appearance. The pointed, elflike ears, tail, fangs, and claws remained, as did the evangelical markings on her face. However, an addition had been made to Kagome's supernatural features. From her back, a pair of silver wings spread to a nine-foot span, releasing several metallic feathers into the breeze.


	6. Kagome's Kidnapper

"What the hell are you doing!" Miyako shouted. "Since when do you use weapons…? … You never told me about this!" She eyed Sakura warily. "I bet /she/ knew, didn't she!"  
Kagome glared with cold, unfeeling eyes at both Sakura and Miyako, giving them a severe case of the chills. Sakura, however, did her best to ignore Miyako for the time being and instead focus her worried gaze on Kagome. /Something's wrong/ she thought. /Kagome /knows/ this form releases a lot of energy. Is she trying to attract some kind of demon/  
Then it hit her.  
It wasn't Kagome's doing at all. Sakura suddenly realized that the reason for her little sister's harsh scowl—and her transformation—was that she was under someone's control.  
"Sakura! Answer me, dammit!" Miyako yelled impatiently.  
"/What!" Sakura replied with equal irritation, snapping back to reality.  
"You look worried as hell. What's the matter with you?"  
Sakura's green eyes narrowed and a silence passed. Right as Sakura opened her mouth to tell Miyako, Kagome let out an agonized scream.  
"Kagome!" Miyako and Sakura cried.  
"I suggest you leave her secrets in the dark, human," growled a hidden but unmistakably familiar voice.  
"Naraku!" Sakura screamed. "Leave Kagome the hell alone! You already killed Inuyasha! Isn't that enough!"  
His villainous cackle bellowed out from nowhere in reply to her question, followed by a cryptically worded response: "That's only half of what I'd consider enough." Kagome then screamed once more, doubling over in pain and clutching her head with trembling hands. At that moment, a confused and frightened Steph appeared at the scene, kept silent by Sakura's warning hand.  
"Get… away…" Kagome muttered faintly.  
Sakura smiled at this. /Be strong, Kagome./  
"/Run!" Kagome's eyes shot open, and then the Tamashii no Tama faded from silver to jet black. An invisible wave of darkness emitted from the jewel and swept over Kagome, turning her markings, clothes, and wings black as well. Her eyes dulled, and she lunged at Sakura with the sword. She dodged easily, and Miyako prepared to retaliate, aiming a half-formed fireball at Kagome. Steph stood back with her hand on the hilt of her Keyblade.  
"Stop!" Sakura said to Miyako. "We're supposed to protect her, not hurt her!"  
Miyako let the fireball dissolve, only to be forced backwards into a tree by a fist of dark energy. Sakura and Steph were also thrown off their feet.  
Naraku's voice spoke with Kagome's: "You lose." With that, the girl vanished in a violent tornado of swirling black miasma.  
"Kagome…" Sakura murmured, reaching out into the empty air. "Ka… go…" For a minute, it seemed as though she would lose consciousness, but then she leapt to her feet with a lively but angry scowl on her face. "/Kagome!"  
"Damn that Naraku!" came Miyako's voice from behind the enraged blonde. She, too, appeared to be revived by a second wind.  
Steph struggled to stand, coughing a bit as she asked, "Alright… can you /please/ tell me what's going on?"  
Sakura turned to her, the angry look on her face not fading but growing worse. "You are only a burden to Kagome. You're no guardian. You don't deserve to understand the suffering she's been through." She was about ready to jump off the side of the cliff in a failing, suicidal attempt to follow Kagome, but Steph took the fleeting silence as an opportunity to speak, stopping Sakura from leaping to her death.  
"I'm no less a guardian than Miyako," Steph muttered bravely. "I'm no less than you."  
Miyako was obviously insulted. "Shut up, Keywielder! Kagome and I weren't sent by the Superior to /befriend/ you, you know. I was sent to protect and accompany Kagome during her mission to /kill/ you!" Steph released a shocked gasp for air. "And as for Sakura… Until Inuyasha's death/no one/ was able to surpass—or even /match/—the way in which he protected Kagome. Sakura holds the title of Kagome's best guardian now, as well as that of her closest friend, and her only family."  
Sakura stared with nearly as much amazement as Steph did as the infuriated unsent finished her speech. Sakura looked as though Miyako had left out an important detail. Close to the point of tears, Steph stepped forward, looking strongly determined.

"Who… who is 'the Superior'?" she asked cautiously, afraid to upset either of the others any further. However, before Miyako could reply, Sakura stood in between the two.  
"Shut up!" she shouted. "We have no fucking /time/ for this! We have to save Kagome!" She then ran past them in the direction of their home, followed immediately by Miyako and then by Steph.  
"We have to get the guys, too," Miyako called up to Sakura. "We can't fight Naraku on our own."  
"Yeah," Sakura replied as she reached the front door. "We're gonna need all the help we can get."


	7. Narrow Escape?

/Where am I/  
Blurred vision dappled with dark blotches allowed limited perception of the girl's surroundings, but with that, she could see that she had indeed been locked up tight. The walls and floor around her were made of a silvery metal she was unable to identify, and as she gradually regained the use of her other senses, she felt herself bound hand and foot by chain to the wall against which she sat. Blinking a few times, her eyesight cleared, and she could see that the room she was in was very small; maybe sixteen square feet in all. The ceiling was low, too, and the mingled scents of blood and smoke floated in the damp air.  
Suddenly, her supersensitive hearing picked up the sound of footsteps, muffled and apparently barefoot. Kagome shuddered as her location—and position—finally made sense to her. /I am Naraku's prisoner. This is not good/ she thought, feeling her heartbeat quicken.  
"Kagome."  
The miko jumped at the sound of her name, uttered by none other than her captor, smirking proudly as he opened up a door she hadn't seen. The hanyou crawled halfway into the chamber holding a key in his mouth, then took the key and unlocked Kagome's shackles. Rubbing her wrists, she waited until he backed out of the room to exit after him.  
"Why did you let me out?" she asked cautiously, keeping her voice at a low volume.  
Naraku's smile grew wider. "I sensed that you were awake, and so I thought it best to release you." After a short pause, he added, "At least for now."  
Feeling unsafe—and very uncomfortable; she was wearing but a very short, sleeveless white dress—Kagome tried to build up a store of magic in case he tried anything, but she felt herself drained of any such thing. /Of course… He took the Tamashii no Tama after the transformation./  
"Indeed, I did," Naraku replied to her thought. "Not only was it incredibly easy to find you, but you are also powerless now."  
"I hate you," Kagome growled through clenched teeth. She glared at him with sincere loathing; she meant what she had said.  
Taking a step forward and pushing Kagome against the wall, he brought his face close to hers as he had done two nights previous. This time, though, he felt her terrified, ragged breathing on his lips. "Yes, I know you despise me, Kagome. However…" Even closer, he opened her mouth slightly with his hand on her chin and muttered, "I lust after you."  
Kagome felt the words on her tongue, shivering at the horrible feeling. "Let go of me…" she whispered. Knowing she had no other option, Kagome prepared to use alchemy to free herself, but before she had the chance, Naraku stepped away.  
"Listen to me, wretch," he said darkly. "I /know/ you. I /know/ what you're going to do before you do it." With crimson eyes gleaming in the pale moonlight that beamed through a window above them, he turned away from her and started to walk away. His raven-hued hair billowed behind him as he said, "Don't try anything with me, Kagome."  
/Do not hold your breath/ Kagome thought when Naraku had left the hallway. /I don't have to try anything at all./ Looking up through the enormous, circular window, she saw the crescent-shaped moon and debated whether she should try to reach Sakura telepathically or if it would take too much energy. Finally, she knew it would be for her own good, and it would also automatically let Sakura know exactly where Kagome was.  
/Sakura/ Kagome screamed mentally, reaching out in desperation for the girl's mind. /Sakura/  
/Kagome/ came the confused reply.  
/Oh, thank god. Sakura/please, hurry up and find me/  
Then the extraordinarily loud clang of a shuriken gun made the poor little oukami nearly jump out of her skin. To her left, a huge chunk of the wall fell forward, cut out of place by seven giant shuriken. Sakura ran into the hallway, followed by six others, two of whom were Steph and Miyako. Kagome's eyes lit up.  
"Funny; I was almost here when you found me," Sakura said with a smug look.  
"Sakura!" Kagome wailed, leaping into her sister's arms. "I am so glad you are here."  
The older girl hugged Kagome briefly before the door at the opposite end of the hallway burst open, revealing an infuriated spider hanyou. Sakura shoved Kagome behind her, clenching her fists.  
"So, the heroes finally show themselves," said Naraku. "Well, I'm terribly sorry, but you won't be getting my dearest Kagome back any time soon."  
A white-haired boy stepped out from the group, his jet-black eyes like bottomless pits of raging fury. "Don't you /dare/ talk about her like she /belongs/ to you!" he shouted.  
"Ah, you must be Akeifa," Naraku said coolly. "King of Thieves, eh? Interesting."  
This time, Sakura took the floor. "Shut up!" she screamed. Turning back to the others, she spoke without hesitation: "Protect Kagome! Axel, help me!"  
Another redhead emerged. This one, male, had fairly dark skin, and he wore a torn-up tuxedo jacket over a dark red shirt. He wore pants that were covered in zippers and chains, and his shoes—though barely visible—were a pair of red-and-black DC sneakers. His eyes were also red.  
Without pausing at all, Sakura and Axel leapt into the air, jumping off opposite walls and invisibly bombarding Naraku with kunai and shuriken from Sakura, fireballs from Axel. Miraculously, they'd caught him off guard, and he was hit by enough of the attacks to be momentarily distracted. "Now, guys/Go!" She raced out of the hallway, along with the others. Although Naraku made no move to pursue them, Miyako used her powers to warp everyone back to their home, causing a wild, flaming whirlwind to engulf them all. When it dissipated, they were nowhere in sight.  
/Pathetic…/ he thought, effortlessly mending the wall with magic. /You are all so incredibly easy to manipulate./


	8. The Calm After Battle

Panting and sighs of relief filled the air when everyone had returned to the house. Kagome was, of course, the center of any fixed attention; that is, whenever any of the guardians found time to concentrate on something, that something was Kagome. Though she hadn't been wounded in any way, the oukami had—to their knowledge—just been saved from a merciless foe who, by the looks of his face, wasn't even fazed by the fact that they'd just run off with his captive.  
"Kagome," said a boy with short, black hair accompanied by dyed-blue bangs of longer, uneven lengths. He had waited until everyone else's minor inquiries had passed before approaching her. "You must tell us exactly what happened before you blacked out. It may be possible for us to prevent another attack from Naraku if we know what he did in the first place."  
Thinking for a moment, painfully aware that all eyes were upon her face, Kagome hesitated in silence. Then, finally, she said in a slow, quiet voice, "I don't know."  
"You /must/ know." This time, the speaker was, by means of appearance, the same one who had shouted so boldly at Naraku just minutes earlier. The only visual difference was the color of his eyes, which had changed from an endless black to a solid, vivid green.  
"But I really do not know," Kagome replied, speaking with heartfelt sorrow. "All that I remember is the scene at the cliff. Naraku forced me, by his control over my body, to attack Sakura, then Miyako and Steph, I think. It was also the only time I've ever teleported, though I'm sure it was not my own ability that allowed me to do it."  
The blue-banged boy took Kagome's hands, staring deeply into her russet-colored eyes with his own chilling blue ones. "Please/try/ to remember as much as you can. None of us can bear to even think of seeing you in such a state a second time. Even those who didn't see it are afraid to imagine it."  
Wrought with chills and involuntary, minor tremors, Kagome averted her eyes and did not utter but two words: "I can't."  
Sakura, seeing the boy grow frustrated, made her way to Kagome and the blue-banged boy, taking his hands from hers and muttering, "Enough, Soujirou."  
"Sakura…" Kagome said softly, looking up with regret into the older girl's eyes… those orbs of pale yet vicious lime green. "I'm sorry."  
"Sorry?" A low, calm voice—male—rang out from behind the others. Everyone looked back at the man who had just uttered the curt inquiry. His hair was long and black, hanging to his mid-back. He wore a blood-red cloak that concealed most of his body, but what clothing was visible was all black. "Why are you sorry, Kagome? You didn't do anything."  
"That's just it, Vincent," the girl responded. "I can't remember. I can't do anything to help myself. I rely too much on you—all of you—to protect me. I'm weak."  
Steph's sincere, stern gaze was now the strongest one fixed on Kagome. "No, you're not," she said strictly. "You are the Starlight Sovereign. You are the ruler of Stelvayne. By no means, mental, physical, or spiritual, are you weak."  
"I /am/ physically weak," protested Kagome. "We all know this is true."  
A cold silence followed. Steph's eyebrows met as she frowned, but before she could argue her point further, Miyako stepped forward.  
"That's why we protect you, Kagome," she said gently, as though trying not to bruise Kagome's dignity any further. "It's not only because you're important, or because you aren't quite all-powerful, but because we choose to look after you and watch out for you."  
"To guard you," said Axel in agreement.  
Kagome's eyes filled with tears. "I… I think I get this speech from you guys way too often," she said mirthfully, allowing herself a small smile. The others laughed, maybe except for Vincent.  
"There, see? All better," said the green-eyed boy. He spoke with an incredibly strong British accent. "Right?"  
"Of course." Kagome's smile strengthened a bit as she looked at the entire group and repeated her gratitude to them. "I cannot thank you enough for protecting me as you have, and as I hope you shall continue to do. You will remain…" She paused, searching for the right words. "…my friends."  
After another long, pressing silence, the group burst into spontaneous merriment when Steph shouted, "Ryou!" and pounced on the green-eyed albino boy, toppling him to the floor. Sakura cracked open a few bottles of various liquors, most of which she combined in a large pitcher and served to all who wished to partake in her concoction.  
"I call it… uh… Well, it doesn't have a name, but it kicks ass!" Sakura shouted gleefully, already partially under the effects of the alcohol.  
With all the insanity going on in the living room, Kagome disappeared into her bedroom, curling up on her bed and wrapping herself once more in the warmth of the wedding blanket. She reached for a book, sitting on her bedside table, which was bound in black leather and scripted on thin, ancient paper. Its pages were interrupted around the middle by a plain, silver bookmark, and so Kagome was able to relocate the place in the text at which she had previously stopped reading. As she resumed, she lost herself in the words written on the pages, allowing her mind to drift as it always did when she read such texts. It was a book written in the Divine Tongue, the first language ever created, and the rarest known by the most recent generation. She was, in fact, one of the few deemed eligible at birth to be taught in the Divine Tongue as an equal to the human language; the Divine Tongue was created by angels and, as they had wished, taught only to angels of the highest intelligence and spiritual strength.  
Apparently, Kagome was an excellent example of such a being.


	9. The Rose

The next morning found Kagome sound asleep on her bed, the book lying over her like a forgotten blanket. She hadn't moved a millimeter over the night, and she wasn't about to do so in the near future.

And neither were her friends; Sakura, Steph, Miyako, and the others were scattered around the living room, sprawled across sofas, the floor, and even the coffee table. Sakura's mystery drink had apparently been a knockout.

And as the sun slowly rose into the pale azure sky, a single silver feather floated in through Kagome's open window, landing gently on the floor. It emitted a silver aura for a moment, and then, in its place, Roxas appeared once again. Now, however, he was not wearing the hooded coat; instead, he wore clothing similar to Kagome's new attire. His consisted of a pair of baggy black pants, strung with chains, zippers, and belts, an enormous, hooded white sweatshirt, and black combat boots, covered also with zippers and belts. His hair was short, spiky, and a dirty shade of blonde, and, parted to the left side, it waved toward the right.

The boy's eyes were what stood out, though. Although partially hidden by strands of golden hair, they shone with such an intense cerulean color that they seemed to glow against his skin.

Roxas approached the sleeping miko quietly, careful not to wake her with his footsteps, and kneeled beside her bed. Gingerly, he reached out and brushed a few strands of hair out of her face, and she stirred; though she did not wake, he jerked his hand away out of caution. Still, though, Roxas smiled, and he watched Kagome sleep for a few entrancing moments.

"Roxas…"

His eyes widened and a tinge of red colored his cheeks, for he had not known until then that Kagome would dream of him. But this also meant that she was awakening, and his limbs refused to move.

"Roxas?" Kagome asked, eyes now wide open, as she drew back, startled.

"I-I'm sorry," he replied nervously. "I didn't mean to wake y—"

Kagome sat straight up, showing a serene, sincerely gleeful smile. "That's not the point! The point is that you're /here!"

"Oh, yeah. That."

As though she were afraid to burst into hysteria, Kagome covered her mouth with both hands, giggling quietly. When she removed them, she said, "I can't believe it. I thought you couldn't see me."

"Huh? What are you talking about?" Roxas said innocently.

"You said something like, 'I have to go. I'm sorry.' Then you poofed!"

Roxas grinned. "Ah, that. Well, it was true—I had to go—but did I ever say I couldn't see you anymore?" From behind his back, he pulled out a silver rose, receiving an awed gasp from the little wolf.

"Oh… oh my…" Kagome stammered, reaching out with two temporarily dysfunctional hands. "A silver rose… where did you get it?"

He simply shook his head, eyes closed, still smirking. "It's a secret." He placed the rose in her hands, clasped them together, then leaned forward and placed his lips on hers for a brief, heavenly moment.

"Get a room, you two!" called a voice from the doorway. The two's eyes darted to the origin of the voice, which just happened to be a certain pink-and-black-haired girl. "You're like me and Skyy. Or Dark, or Zell, or…"

"Oh, stop it, Steph," Kagome said, smiling through her reddened face.

Roxas looked half frustrated, half embarrassed. "Steph? Is that really you? You look so different… I mean… there's pink even in your /hair/ now."

Steph put her hands on her hips. "So? You got a problem?"

All of them started to laugh, and then Roxas said, "I'm surprised you trust me. I mean, you aren't afraid that I'm not supposed to be here."

Kagome spoke up first, strangely. "Our memories won't let us think that," she said happily. "Mine, especially. You're so clear in each and every one of my memories that I wouldn't be able to mistake anyone for you, or vice versa."

Steph nodded. "That's about it," she said approvingly.

"Well, whatever the reason, I can't complain. It makes me happy." He glanced at Kagome, who looked back up at him when she felt his gaze land on her. Steph shook her head and turned around.

"You two seem to be busy wallowing in your little, uh… infatuation, so I'm gonna leave you alone." She turned her head, looking over her shoulder at them, and winked.

"Steph!" Kagome said accusingly, aware of the heat rising in her cheeks.

Roxas put his hand on Kagome's—the hand in which the rose was enclosed—and said, "Calm down. It's okay."

And as the door slammed behind the storm of pink and black, Kagome replied, "It's only okay because you're here."


End file.
